In Between
by ravenwings52
Summary: Drabbles about anything and everything (And yes, I drew the cover)
1. Chapter 1

1. Darquesse

When Valkyrie's Darquesse, she is alive. She can feel the magic awaken from within her, and she is free. She's free from rules or humanity. She can do anything and everything; test her powers to the limit. So she does.

She flies through towns with a reckless abandon, demolishing buildings and burning forests with a wave of her arm. She kills mortals and sorcerers alike; making their brains explode or watching them slowly bleed to death in agony surrounded by loved ones. Darquesse watches them curiously, laughing when she discovers a new way to break a bone or a hidden power that she has.

Sometimes Lord Vile joins in on the fun. Darquesse especially loves this, because she knows that Skulduggery has lost control and that he won't bring Valkyrie back any time soon. She taunts Vile, flying away when he comes close, reattaching a limb when it's sliced off by his armor. Occasionally, Darquesse lets her blood flow, reveling in the sharp agony of her every movement, knowing that she could fix the wounds in a heartbeat.

When Valkyrie's Darquesse, she murders with reckless abandon, the power coursing through her veins. But when Valkyrie returns, she regrets. For the lives lost, for losing control. But most of all, she regrets the loss of power.

* * *

So, first drabble! Ever!

I'm kind of a newbie at the whole fanfiction thing, so tell me what you think.

This will be a drabble series, focused mostly around Valkyrie. Request anything you want, as long as it stays below T and no slashy stuff please.

Thanks!

-ravenwings52


	2. Chapter 2

2. Hulk

Valkyrie and Fletcher were sitting on the couch watching a movie at Gordon's house. It was a Saturday, so they were alone watching _The Avengers_.

"You're like the Hulk."

"Excuse me?" Valkyrie turned to her boyfriend incredulously.

"Y'know, when you're in danger your other side comes out and you can't control yourself for a while."

Valkyrie was silent for a second as she processed what he had said.

"Wait… You're saying that I'm like the HULK?!"

Fletcher began to realize that this wasn't the best character to compare the girl training with prominent fighters and combatants from all over the world with.

"Well… yeah. Except you don't get green and muscly, you get enhanced magic powers. And yours is more like a split personality disorder or something. And Darquesse only comes out when you're about to die, not when you're mad."

"You, Fletcher Renn, are comparing me to a huge, green, muscle-bound freak that has ANGER ISSUES?!"

Fletcher cringed. When the missus began the last names, you had better fix your mistake pronto.

"Um… You're prettier and hotter and don't have anger issu- actually, you do have anger issues but now's not the best time to bring that up, am I right?"

Valkyrie's voice got dangerously calm.

"I'm going to give you five seconds to run away before I come after you."

Fletcher couldn't move for a week.

* * *

I was watching _The Avengers _and this drabble immediately popped into my mind...

I know that there's a bunch of you Skulduggery Pleasant fans reading this fic, so could you spare a second and review? I'm running out of drabble ideas...

Thanks!

-ravenwings52


	3. Chapter 3

This one will be a totally AU, angsty, and probably OOC drabble.

* * *

3. Three calls

The first call had come in January.

* * *

_Valkyrie sat numbly on her bed in Skulduggery's house. She was staying over for the weekend, as they were to go on a stakeout later that night._

_"What did you say?"_

_The reflection's voice was distorted by the bad connection._

_"Mum has oral cancer. Stage two. She needs to get an operation."_

_"No. You're lying. She was fine the last time I saw her."_

_"I thought you might want to know. The last time you saw her was a year ago. Anyways, they're leaving for the hospital in an hour."_

_Valkyrie had rushed downstairs. Skulduggery was sitting on the couch, flipping through some paperwork. The skeleton had looked up worriedly._

_"What's wrong?"_

_"I have to get home. Now."_

* * *

That had been two years ago. The car ride had felt like a lifetime, and Valkyrie had felt a sense of relief when she had traded places with her reflection and her mother was still there.

* * *

_Valkyrie had squeezed her mother tightly as soon as she saw her._

_"How long will you stay at the hospital?"_

_Melissa Edgley had smoothed down her daughter's hair in what might've seemed calming to the untrained eye, but Valkyrie had heard the worry laced tightly in her mother's voice._

_"I'll only stay overnight, maybe two days. It depends on how large the tumor is. Can you baby-sit Alice while your dad and I are gone?"_

_Valkyrie could only nod._

_"There's a good girl. Make sure that Alice gets her naps; we don't want a cranky toddler to be there the first thing we come back!"_

_That one word, when, gave Valkyrie hope. Not an if, but when. Valkyrie had waved almost joyfully as her parents left. She would see her mum soon. It was only a matter of time._

* * *

'When' came, but it didn't last long enough.

* * *

_Valkyrie had lunch ready the next day when her parents came back. Yesterday, after she explained that her mother had cancer- the word felt heavy and foreign to her mouth- Skulduggery had given her the rest of the weekend off to stay with her family. She had spent the rest of the night sleeping and watching Disney movies with Alice. _

_As soon as she saw the family car coming down the street; Valkyrie had flown to the door, greeting her parents eagerly. Her dad was a bit haggard, and her mum looked a little more tired than usual, but Valkyrie brushed those thoughts aside. Her mum was home, and she would be fine, and Valkyrie could go back to fighting crime with Skulduggery and everything would be back to normal again._

_"Is that chicken I smell?" her father had asked. "Alice is getting better at cooking."_

_"Desmond!" her mother had reprimanded, but Valkyrie could still hear the laughter in her voice. "Alice is only three. She can't cook yet."_

_"And here I was, thinking that I had two daughters fully capable of cooking a meal. Oh well. At least Stephanie can cook... You cooked the chicken, right?"_

_Valkyrie had smiled sheepishly._

_"Actually, I took some precious time to call KFC. You like original, right?"_

* * *

The next call had come a month later.

* * *

_Valkyrie had been training with Tanith when her phone rang._

_"Focus, Valkyrie! You need to keep your guard up."_

_"It's the reflection."_

_The blonde woman had sighed._

_"Oh, all right. Just make it quick- I'm having dinner at Ghastly's tonight."_

_Valkyrie wiped the sweat off of her forehead and grinned._

_"Is that__** all**__ you've been having?"_

_Tanith had blushed slightly._

_"Valkyrie! Get your mind out of the gutter!"_

_Valkyrie had smiled impishly._

_"Kidding, kidding."_

_She slid her touchscreen out of her pocket, and touched 'accept call'. Her smile faded as she listened to her reflection._

_"The doctors say that not all of the cancer cells had been removed. Mum's going to start chemotherapy for the next ten weeks beginning Wednesday."_

_Valkyrie had dropped her phone, the screen cracking as it collided with the wood training floor._

_"Valkyrie? Is it your family?"_

_The younger girl just stood there, still as a statue._

* * *

The doctors couldn't help.

* * *

_"Mum!" Valkyrie had called out. "How are you doing?"  
Melissa Edgley had been sitting up in bed, hooked up to various machines and dressed in a standard 'one-size-fits-none' hospital gown. Melissa was much thinner than before, and her smile was slightly pained._

_"I'm doing just fine. My last treatment is next week. After that, we won't have to come to the hospital anymore. Where's your dad?"_

_"He's at home, taking care of Alice. At least, I hope he is."_

_Melissa had chuckled at that._

_A nurse had walked in, holding a clip-board and wearing a too-bright smile along with too-high heels._

_"Mrs. Edgley, Dr. Cneasai would like to talk to you for a second."_

_"Of course," Melissa had said. "Tell him to come on in."_

_The nurse looked pointedly at Valkyrie._

_"Visitors must leave. This is a completely private conversation between the doctor and the patient."_

_Valkyrie looked at her mother._

_"I'll be fine," Melissa assured her. "You'll only be gone for a minute or so."_

_Valkyrie left the room._

_Ten minutes later, the nurse called Valkyrie back in. The nurse brushed past her rudely, her heels clicking all the way down the hallway. Valkyrie felt sorry for the next patient the nurse terrorized._

_Melissa Edgley patted the bed, inviting Valkyrie to sit next to her. Valkyrie knew something bad had happened. _

_"Stephanie, honey, the chemotherapy isn't working. All it's doing is making me weaker."_

_"No," Valkyrie's voice trembled for the first time in years. "No no no no no."_

_"Stephanie-"_

_Valkyrie felt dizzy._

_"No. They're lying. You're going to be okay and we'll go back home and Dad'll have forgotten to make dinner so we'll have to get pizza and-"_

_"Stephanie-"_

_"No. NO! It's NOT TRUE!"_

_"I only have three months left."_

* * *

The last call had arrived two weeks later.

* * *

_"Well, that was strange," Skulduggery commented, as they walked to the Bentley after that day's case. "Remind me to never try to reason with a female vampire on a diet again."_

_Valkyrie gave him a weak smile. She knew he was trying to lighten the mood, but ever since that day two weeks ago, all she could think about was her family._

_"She's going to be alright, you know."_

_Skulduggery's voice was soft._

_Valkyrie sighed as she slipped into the front seat next to Skulduggery._

_"I know, it's just that-"_

_She was cut off by a familiar ringtone. 'Wait,' she mouthed to Skulduggery. He nodded._

_"Hello?"_

_"You have to come home __now__. Mum is dead."_

_It took a moment for Valkyrie to process everything. Then all she could remember were the tears and the fire in her heart and the empty comfort of skeleton hugs._

* * *

The funeral had been small. Only their immediate family and her mum's side of the family had come.

* * *

_The church had been small and musty and cold. Valkyrie sat in the front with her dad and Alice. None of what the fat priest in the front said penetrated the thick fog surrounding her. It all felt so surreal, like a scene out of a melodrama. She felt like everything was for nothing. What was the point of controlling Darquesse if her mum had died anyways? What was the point of saving the world if there was no one worth saving in it?_

_But the fighter in her was still there. She still had Alice and her dad to protect. She had her friends and the innocent people out there to fight for. And Skulduggery would never leave her._

* * *

And for now, that would be enough.

* * *

I almost cried writing this...

Please tell me if this is review worthy.

-ravenwings52


	4. Chapter 4

Here's the sequel to Three Calls!

4. Four Questions

Valkyrie didn't leave her room for days. Her dad would bring her meals and place them in front of her door, knowing that it was pointless trying to get her to come out. She wouldn't answer her phone or talk to any of her friends.

On the first day, Desmond tried to talk to his daughter.

"Stephanie, I know you miss mum. I do too. But we'll see her in the afterlife."

Valkyrie, who was lying on her bed, didn't say anything.

_No, I'm not. You will. Alice will. But I'm not going to see mum again. I've seen too much bloodshed and caused too much pain and death. I'm a killer, and you're not. You'll go to heaven like mum. I know where I'm going: hell._

* * *

Tanith and Ghastly called on the second day.

Valkyrie was sitting at her desk, pretending to read _Eragon_, when her phone rang. Valkyrie reached for it, but remembered the bad news that she had heard the last time someone called. She turned back to her book, waiting for Tanith to give up and leave her alone.

Tanith didn't give up, and she definitely didn't leave her alone. Tanith kept on calling Valkyrie continuously for the next two hours, the phone's incessant ringing driving the teen mad. Finally, Valkyrie opened her window and chucked the device into the flower beds below, hurling a few fireballs at it for a good measure. The phone stopped ringing, and Valkyrie thought that was the end of it.

Then the doorbell rang. Valkyrie cringed as she heard Tanith cheerfully introducing herself as "one of Stephanie's best friends" and Ghastly as her boyfriend. Then the yelling started.

"Stephanie! Get down here right now and explain to me exactly why you haven't answered the phone for the last two hours!"

Valkyrie's thoughts turned to the twisted metal smoldering in the plants below her window.

She listened to Ghastly pulling Tanith outside, overhearing snippets of conversation.

"Tanith, you know that it's ultimately Valkyrie's decision..."

"...It's just hard watching her lose the will to live..."

"All that we can do is be here for her..."

Valkyrie peered out of the window to be treated to the sight of two of her best friends hugging. Tanith was leaning back on Ghastly, who had his arms wrapped around the blonde combatant. The young detective turned away, the scene reminding her too much of her parents embracing.

Didn't they know that it was pointless, trying to help? Valkyrie had given up a long time ago.

* * *

Next was Fletcher, then China.

Fletcher had been stared down by her dad ("How dare you break up with my daughter!" "That was a couple of years ago! Um, sir...") and China was deterred by a cranky Alice.

Valkyrie knew that eventually Skulduggery would come. She wasn't sure what would happen, but she knew that when he came she'd have a reason to keep on living. So she waited.

* * *

It was almost midnight on the third day when he finally came. He knocked on the window gently, and the tall girl slowly unlatched the window.

"You came," she stated.

"That I did," he responded with an uncharacteristic tenderness, observing the girl in front of him.

She had gotten thin, and her eyes were heavy from fatigue. Valkyrie had lost her spark, and Skulduggery was determined to rekindle it.

"Where were you?"

Skulduggery hesitated. Should he tell her about the horrible memories that had rushed back to him? His wonderful wife and darling child dying at the hand of Serpine? The darkness twisting inside of him when he became Vile? The long years when the great skeleton detective had fallen, those hopeless nights when he tried to leave it all behind but found that he couldn't die?

"Remembering," he said, and she knew.

He sat down on the bed next to her.

"Why?" she asked Skulduggery. "Why my mum?"

"Because," the skeleton replied, "because love kills. Because love is a torturous thing. It hurts you in the most painful way. But you can't help it, because love is also a beautiful thing. It gives us life. And you loved her."

She leaned her head on his shoulder, and Skulduggery let her.

"Why us?"

"The world needs heroes and we're the closest they have."

She shut her eyes.

"Why live?"

"Because there is always love, healing and destroying this world."

A tear slipped down her cheek, and Skulduggery brushed it away.

"Why me?" she whispered.

"Because you gave me a reason to live."

And her spark came back, and Skulduggery held her tight until the tears and the pain left with the night.

* * *

Desmond would never forget how lovely his eldest daughter looked in the morning, eyes shining as she walked down the stairs, and he didn't even protest when the next day she introduced a certain Skulduggery Pleasant.

* * *

Yeah, yeah. I know. Valkyrie and Skulduggery get a lot OOC at the end there, but believe me. You aren't going to joke around when talking about dead family members.

Drabble requests needed!

Raven out!

-ravenwings52


	5. Chapter 5

This is for Phobby Writer!

5. Sunburnt

"This is your fault."

Skulduggery turned around to face Valkyrie, who was wringing the water out if her hair. She should've been able to use her magic to dry off, but since Valkyrie insisted that her expertise in water elemental magic was quite adequate, thank you very much, the young sorcerer had to dry her hair manually.

"As I recall, it was your idea to go to the beach. I can't believe you convinced me to go on our day off."

The teenage girl scowled.

"How was I supposed to know that there were killer mermaids with a grudge against a certain skeleton detective at the beach?! I didn't even know that mermaids existed until today."

"You never asked."

Valkyrie sent a death glare his way. Skulduggery ignored her, and began to reattach his arm.

"Anyways, it's still your fault this happened."

Valkyrie gestured at her arms and legs. Skulduggery would've blinked clulessly if he had eyelids.

"Um... You got a couple of bruises?"

Valkyrie threw her wet towel at him.

"Stupid! Look! I've gotten a sunburn!"

"It can't be that bad."

"Yes it is!"

Skulduggery sighed. There would be no reasoning with the girl now.

"Well?"

"What?"

Skulduggery elaborated.

"What do you want me to do? I have a feeling you'll threaten me if I don't do something for you."

"Drive me back to Gordon's house. I think I have some of that aloe vera stuff somewhere. And after that, you are going to take me to the movies."

"And how will watching a movie help your sunburn?"

"Skulduggery," Valkyrie's voice was dangerously calm. "If you do not take me to watch _Pacific_ _Rim_ to make up for the mermaid incident, then I will take your hat and give it to the leader of said mermaids. Then I will donate you to the science lab at school, and take the Bentley."

Skulduggery lifted his hands up in surrender.

"Fine. But the next time you forget to bring sunscreen to the beach, I'm not taking you to watch a movie."

* * *

Later, when Valkyrie falls asleep in the Bentley on the way back from the theater, Skulduggery smiles and decides that sunburns aren't so bad after all.

* * *

Kinda pointless one-shot. But it was fun to write, so...

More prompts/ideas please!

Thanks!

-ravenwings52


	6. Chapter 6

Okay. So I woke up this morning at 7:30 to the sound of my sister watching My Little Pony and decided to make the most of my time also known as writing FANFICTION! Even though it's a Saturday and I haven't eaten breakfast yet...

6. Bedridden

"Valkyrie, we're needed at the Sanctuary. There are some renegade sorcerers..."

Skulduggery stopped talking as he realized that Valkyrie wasn't picking up. He would have to do this the hard way.

* * *

Valkyrie woke up at 7:00 in the morning to the sound of her phone ringing. On top of that, her sunburn seemed to have gotten worse. Her skin felt like it was on fire, and her arms and legs were especially tingly. Her head hurt, too. Probably because of those stupid mermaids and their stupid rocks. She was going back to sleep, renegade sorcerers or not.

30 minutes later, Valkyrie was woken up by an impatient Skulduggery knocking on her window.

"We have to go!" Skulduggery shouted, his voice slightly muffled by the layer of glass separating them.

"No."

"What?"

"I have a sunburn, a killer headache, and you expect me to just jump up and help with some little problem?"

"They killed three mortals."

Valkyrie rolled over onto her stomach.

"Whatever. Make the Sanctuary deal with it. Better yet, get Erskine to get off of his lazy Grand Mage bum and deal with it himself."

Skulduggery chuckled at this.

"We're going to get fired, you know that?"

"Yes, and then tomorrow, when some psychopathic adept shows up, they'll hire us again. Besides, I don't get paid."

"Alright. You can have the day off."

Valkyrie groaned.

"I can't get out of bed. My sunburn hurts too much."

"If you let me in, I could take a closer look at it."

"I can't move, remember?"

Skulduggery rolled his metaphorical eyes.

"Use your magic."

Valkyrie flicked a finger, and the air pushed the window latch up.

"See? That's how awful I feel. I forgot about magic."

"It seems to me that it happens to you most of the time."

"Oh, shut up and hand me that green bottle on my desk."

Skulduggery picked up the small container, and read,

"_Aloe Vera. Soothes all burns. _I thought that you said it didn't work?"

"Just give it to me."

As Skulduggery got closer to the girl, he realized that Valkyrie's arms and legs were an angry red and her skin was peeling.

"Maybe you should take a shower. The water ought to cool your skin off."

"I am not getting up."

"All right then... I best be going. I need to take care of the small problem of renegade sorcerers going around and killing innocent mortals."

Valkyrie glared at him.

"Fine then. Leave your partner and best friend to valiantly suffer alone. I'll probably die while you're gone, and you'll regret not being able to say goodbye for the rest of your life."

"I highly doubt that you will perish from sunburn while I am gone. In fact, the worst that could happen is that you'll stay in bed all day, and when I come back, you'll be cranky and hungry and will order me around."

"Stay."

"You'll hardly die."

"Stay," Valkyrie insisted. "If you don't stay, I'm running away with Fletcher."

Skulduggery bristled.

"If you start dating that idiotic teleporter again, then I swear, I will hunt him down."

Valkyrie smiled.

"Then stay."

* * *

Skulduggery Pleasant regretted many things in life, but this was probably going to haunt him for the rest of his life.

"WHERE WERE YOU?! I HAD TO DEAL WITH THE BLEEPING SORCERERS MYSELF, D*** IT ALL!"

Skulduggery held the phone away at an arms length as Erskine ranted at him.

"...THIS IS THE LAST STRAW! YOU'RE FIRED!"

Valkyrie looked at Skulduggery from her bed.

"Tell him that I was grievously injured, and that I was bedridden all day."

Skulduggery did.

Valkyrie was fired, too.


	7. Chapter 7

Just a little poem I wrote

Can be read as a continuation of Three Calls and Four Questions if Valkyrie and her family went crazy with grief

7. Ghost

My mum, my dad, my sister and me

We live in a house, just us three

My mum, my dad, my sister and me

Four are there, but one you can't see

Three live, we sing and dance and walk

Three open doors, one room is locked

My dad, my sister and me talk

One's buried under solid rock

My mum, my dad, my sister and me

Living an illusion only we can see

Pretending that together four are happy

When there's only three in reality

My dad, my sister, me and a ghost

The spirit of the one we loved the most

Wandering around without a host

My dad, my sister, me and a ghost

My mum, my dad, my sister and me

Haunted by a ghost only we can see

Losing our minds to a fantasy

My dad, my sister, no mum, and me

* * *

Not the best poem ever, but I wrote it so I had to post it.

-ravenwings52


	8. Chapter 8

Set before LSoDM

8. Anger Management

"No. You can't make me go."

"I agree. We are detectives. We do not need to go to anger management classes."

Ravel glared at Skulduggery.

"Are you really going to have this conversation with me? If you don't go, I'm firing you. And believe me, I won't forgive you as readily as the sunburning incident."

Skulduggery sighed in defeat.

"Valkyrie," he started.

"No. I am not going to go to anger management sessions with people we locked up. This will be bad for my health!"

"We might be able to beat somebody up."

"No, you can't beat people up in anger management classes! The whole point of attending is to refrain from doing just that!" Erskine intervened.

"Well, that's no fun."

"You're not there to have fun! You're there to get your FREAKIN' TEMPER UNDER CONTROL!"

Valkyrie laughed.

"Seems like you need to check your temper more than Skulduggery does. Fine, we'll go. But if somebody tries to kill us, we reserve the right to beat them to pulp."

The two detectives then left the room, Skulduggery giving a mock bow and Valkyrie grinning like a maniac.

"Get Doctor Nye at the ready. I have a feeling that somebody's going to get hurt soon." Erskine growled to Tipstaff, then slammed his fist into his desk.

Why were detectives so darn frustrating?

* * *

The session was better than Valkyrie expected.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie were the last ones to arrive in the small room. As they arrived, everybody looked up.

"Is Erskine trying to kill us?" Valkyrie whispered to Skulduggery.

"I think so," the skeleton whispered back. In a louder voice, he said,

"Spring-Heeled Jack, Billy-Ray Sanguine, Dusk, Vaurien Scapegrace, Gerald, what a pleasure to see you all again."

The five villains glared at them. Well, four of them. Gerald just whimpered.

Valkyrie sat down next to Skulduggery and Spring-Heeled Jack in the circle of chairs. Right after the two detectives were seated, a large, smiling woman entered the room.

"Hello! My name is Doctor Sásta, but you can call me Sona."

"Seriously? Your taken name is Doctor Glad, and you want us to call you Happy? How redundant is that?" Valkyrie asked in disbelief.

Doctor Happy sniffed.

"I think that the Irish words for happy are very nice. And please don't insult other people's taken names; it isn't very nice and since we're all friends here we want to be nice to each other. Right?" The anger management teacher plastered a fake smile on top of her cakey makeup.

"Does a friend throw their friend in jail?" Dusk snarled.

Doctor Happy's smile froze.

"I'm sure that they're very sorry. Right, Mr. Pleasant?"

"On the contrary. I don't regret throwing any of them into jail at all!"

The others started to seethe with revenge in mind.

"I don't like this lady," Valkyrie muttered to Skulduggery. "Can I punch her in the face now?"

"Wait until somebody tries to kill us, please."

"Mr. Pleasant, Ms. Cain, no side conversations please. We don't want anybody to feel excluded, do we? Because that would make us feel sad. Being happy is the only way to control your anger."

Billy-Ray Sanguine stood up.

"Well, it's been great and all, attending this session against my will, but I think that I'll just be going now..."

Doctor Happy frowned.

"That makes me feel upset, and you don't want to see me get upset..."

"I think I'll leave, too."

One by one, they all stood up to go.

"Valkyrie, I believe we have a very important case to attend to...?"

Valkyrie got up.

"Well, look at that! We're late!"

Doctor Happy's face grew red.

"Late for what?"

"We're going to go watch the sparrow fly south for the winter."

Valkyrie's fist smashed into Doctor Happy's face, breaking her nose.

"Thank you for the lesson!" Valkyrie called out cheerfully, as she walked out the door with Skulduggery. "Punching you got rid of a lot of my negative feelings."

The teenager then locked the door behind them, leaving Doctor Happy with a bloody nose and five angry bad guys.

The two detectives walked down the hallway, Skulduggery whistling.

"Do you think Erskine'll get mad?"

"Certainly," Skulduggery replied, grinning.

* * *

Erskine fired them for the 56th time.

* * *

A bit of nonsensical non canon stuff for you.

-ravenwings52


	9. Chapter 9

Set anytime canon

9. Selfish

Skulduggery sat next to Valkyrie, meditating while his partner slept. It had been a long day, and she deserved the rest. Skulduggery watched the girl's peaceful form, remembering when he had first met her.

It had been so many years since Valkyrie had been that young twelve-year old girl who followed him around. Now, she was a fine young woman who considered herself Skulduggery's equal, if not more. Sometimes Skulduggery missed that enthusiastic, innocent child, and wondered what had possessed him to make her into this battle-worn, tired teenager who had seen too much to stay away. But Valkyrie told him hundreds of times that she wouldn't go back for the world, no matter how trying this life may be, and Skulduggery was too selfish to let her leave. So he continued to help her flourish in this twisted environment, encouraging her and putting her into harm's way more than once.

So many times, he realized just how big of a part she played in his life. The first time had been when Serpine was torturing her. When Skulduggery had heard her screams, something in him broke. A blinding fury overtook him, just like the time that he had stood there, watching his family die at the hand of Serpine. He couldn't help them, but he could help this girl, this brave girl who had risked everything to save him. The second time was when he had to kill her reflection. His hand trembled as he lifted the gun, and the sight of her dead reflection rattled him for days, though he'd never tell her that. And it continued. The time when Doctor Nye was experimenting her. Again and again he felt a certain protective instinct about the girl. He never implied that it was because he was attached to her; he let her just assume that it was because they were partners.

Occasionally, after a particularly rattling incident, he entertained the idea of asking her to stay away from the more dangerous cases. But he never did, as he knew that she would jump on the defensive, thinking that he was treating her as a helpless child and start taking risks just to prove that she could.

He could never understand her, or their relationship. Valkyrie was undefinable. Their bond was even more convoluted: a pretty, eighteen-year-old, magical and capable girl and an egoistic, four hundred-year-old, magical skeleton detective. They were partners, best friends, some would even say that they loved each other.

Skulduggery was certain that he hadn't felt like this about his wife. His wife had been lovely, even beautiful. She had been an adequate sorcerer, but delicate and fragile. His wife had had a certain surreal aura about her, and was very careful and thoughtful. Skulduggery had loved her, and had held a certain admiration for her.

Valkyrie, on the other hand, was different. She was pretty in a darker way, and wasn't fragile at all. She was more than capable of defending herself without magic, and was unpredictable. She would take risks, and wasn't scared of a couple broken bones. Her soul was as twisted as his own.

Skulduggery sighed, and brushed a stray piece of Valkyrie's hair away from her forehead. No matter what happened, he knew that he could never live without her. He was far too selfish.

* * *

Valkyrie felt Skulduggery's hand linger on her forehead as she tried to fall asleep on the couch. She marveled at how much he seemed to have changed towards her over the years.

In the beginning, Skulduggery had been more like her teacher and mentor. She had gotten over that stage pretty quickly. Then it was more of a best friend/partner sort of relationship, if you went around arresting monsters and sorcerers and generally risked your life on a daily basis with your friend. Lately, he had been more... Protective. Somehow, they had stayed friends through the years. Even when Valkyrie found out another awful secret from Skulduggery's past, she couldn't leave. She wouldn't leave. Because after all that they had been through together, Valkyrie was too selfish to give up her best friend. So she continued to become stronger, every day worrying about her family.

Sometimes, after a near brush with death, Valkyrie considered leaving the sorcerer world behind. Go back to school and live her life. But she realized how important Skulduggery was to her. She couldn't just leave him. She realized this first when Skulduggery was kidnapped by Serpine. She had felt so lost, so _helpless_ without him. A certain kind of determination burst inside if her, and she knew that she had to save him if it was the last thing she did. The second time was when he was pulled into the Faceless One's dimension. Again, the same single-minded determination overtook her, and she wouldn't rest until she knew that Skulduggery was safe. Valkyrie would never tell him this, but she felt safer when he was there with her. She continuously felt a spark inside whenever she was with him. She never told him this; she just let him assume that she was just putting up a brave face for him.

At times, Valkyrie just wanted to be a teenager. She wanted to go and have fun and only worry about college. But she never told Skulduggery this, because she knew he would take her seriously and let her go. Valkyrie didn't want him to.

She couldn't understand their relationship, and Skulduggery was even more puzzling. Skulduggery was... Skulduggery. The bond they shared was even stranger. Was he a father-figure? Her role-model? Her best friend and partner? A mix of all of those things? Some people implied that they could be something more, but Valkyrie doubted that.

She didn't feel like this at all about her ex-boyfriend. Fletcher was cute, sometimes even hot, even though he had ridiculous hair. He had been narcissistic and idiotic and lovable. Fletcher had absolutely adored her, but she never really felt the same way about him. He had loved her, and she... She wasn't capable of giving him what he had wanted.

Skulduggery was completely different. He was definitely not cute or hot, though his skull was oddly comforting and his facades had nice cheekbones. Skulduggery wasn't that narcissistic and he wasn't idiotic at all. Sometimes he was quite the gentleman, and very suave, but most of the times, he was just Skulduggery. Skulduggery did not adore her; instead, he treated her as his equal. Skulduggery didn't love her, but she knew that they felt the same way about each other.

Valkyrie sighed, and let Skulduggery's hand rest on her shoulder. No matter what happened, she knew that she could never live without him. She was far too selfish.

* * *

Just a bit of a reflection on their relationship. Not quite love, but something more.

-ravenwings52


	10. Chapter 10

10. Listen

"Are you serious? _This_ is our lesson for the day?"

"I am very serious, Valkyrie. You are going to learn how to pick locks."

"What's the point? If I need to pick a lock, I can just get Tanith to do her fancy shmancy adept magic or bust the lock open myself."

Skulduggery sighed.

"The point is that sometimes you need to be subtle and can't just 'bust the lock open' or use magic. Besides, Tanith isn't going to be with you every second of the day."

"But learning how to pick locks is boring."

"Au contraire, my dear. Lock picking is quite fascinating."

"Learning how to fight is fascinating. Learning how to solve mysteries is fascinating. Learning how to use magic is fascinating. Heck, even listening to you prattle on and on about 'the good ole' days' is more fascinating than learning how to pick locks like some thief from the dark ages!"

"Lock picking is much more recent than that!"

"Whatever. My point is, lock picking is an old and useless skill that only old people like you know."

That had been a week ago. Valkyrie almost wished that she had paid attention to Skulduggery ranting on and on about the art of lock picking, because then she wouldn't be standing outside in the rain, trying to get inside of her house before her parents came home and failing miserably. She had tried to call Tanith,but her phone was dead. In the Bentley, Skulduggery smirked as he drove away with Valkyrie's house key in his pocket. That would teach her to pay attention to the pearls of wisdom he had to share.

* * *

I know, I know. Totally random and weird. Whatever. I'm still going to post it.

-ravenwings52


	11. Chapter 11

AU one-shot. Kinda depressing...

11. No legs

_Valkyrie Cain, age 5_

_"Mum! Mum! Look! I can ride my bike with no hands!" A small Stephanie Edgley waved with both hands as she passed by her mother._

_"Stephanie! Keep your hands on the handlebars or you'll fall!"_

_"I don't need my hands!" Stephanie bragged, sticking her tongue out a little. "I'm a big kid!"_

* * *

Valkyrie wasn't too bothered when she couldn't use her hands; after all, when you hung out with the infamous Skulduggery Pleasant, you spent a surprisingly large amount of your time in chains. But she didn't know what she would do without them.

She wouldn't be able to use magic or punch people or hold Alice's hand. She wouldn't be able to text or do pull-ups or take Skulduggery's hat. She couldn't imagine living without hands.

* * *

_Valkyrie Cain, age 13_

_"Twelve seconds!" Tanith shouted, slicing the practice dummy to pieces. "Betcha can't beat that."_

_"Ha! I could do that with my eyes closed," Valkyrie boasted._

_The older woman raised an eyebrow._

_"Prove it."_

_Valkyrie shut her eyes, trying to pinpoint the exact location of the dummy. The world seemed a lot darker with her eyes closed._

_She finally sensed the dummy with air manipulation and ran straight at it, executing a flawless roundhouse kick and sending some fireballs after it._

_"Val!" Tanith's voice was near. Too near. In fact..._

_Valkyrie opened her eyes. A burnt and bruised Tanith glared at her, the practice dummy on the other side of the room._

_"...Sorry?"_

* * *

Valkyrie wasn't very worried when she couldn't see, either. It tended to come with the evil villains chaining her up or knocking her out. But she relied heavily on her eyes as well.

Without her eyes, she couldn't see where the enemy was or where to go. She would have to rely on other people's help to survive. Valkyrie definitely needed her eyes.

* * *

_Valkyrie, age 9_

_"Hey, Uncle Gordon! I can walk without legs!"_

_"Hmm?"_

_A laughing young girl walked on her hands past her uncle's office._

_"Very nice, Stephanie!" He applauded. "Now, try to avoid bumping into the lamp in the hallway-"_

_CRASH!_

_"Sorry!" a voice called from the hallway._

_Gordon moaned, and rubbed his temples. The lamp had been given to him by none other then the beautiful China Sorrows. What was he going to do?_

* * *

Valkyrie was worried when she woke up in the infirmary and couldn't feel her toes. She was even more worried when she couldn't feel her legs either. Valkyrie downright panicked when she looked down at her legs- no, where her legs should be.

She couldn't live without her legs. She wouldn't be able to run or walk or kick. She wouldn't be able to step on Skulduggery's toes at the Requiem ball next year. She wouldn't be able to bury her feet in the sand at the beach or go places.

But she would have to live without them.

And she couldn't.

So she didn't.

* * *

And no, I don't know whether Valkyrie killed herself or what. Don't ask.

On a completely different note, I have noticed that 70+ people have viewed my story. Thank you! But can you review please?

Special thanks to the four people who do review!

-ravenwings52


	12. Chapter 12

12. Nightmares

"Goodnight, Valkyrie."

"'Night, Skulduggery."

The skeleton detective shut the door to Valkyrie's bedroom softly and headed downstairs to one if the many living rooms in his house. He sighed, and settled down in one of his favorite leather chairs. Skulduggery sat, deep in thought, until he heard footsteps. He got up very quietly, making sure not to step on any of the creaking floorboards, and turned around.

"Valkyrie? What are you doing downstairs?"

The teenage girl stood at the foot of the staircase, rubbing sleep from her eyes. Her black t-shirt and red skull pajama bottoms were rumpled, and her hair was tangled and messy.

"I couldn't sleep..."

"Nightmares?"

She nodded. Skulduggery headed to the kitchen.

"Would you like some coffee or tea?"

"Coffee, please."

Skulduggery nodded, and Valkyrie sat at the kitchen table. As the skeleton poured the water into the coffee machine, he spoke.

"Was it Darquesse?"

His partner didn't speak for a time.

"It was the usual. She was standing on a battlefield, surrounded by corpses. I could recognize Tanith, and Ghastly, and my parents... And Alice. But then it changed."

The normally stoic girl's voice began to tremble, and she faltered for a second.

"Go on," Skulduggery urged gently.

She took a deep breath before continuing.

"Th-Then you came, and tried to stop her, but she took you apart, bone by bone and Vile wouldn't emerge and y-you died!" Valkyrie's voice cracked at the last few words.

Skulduggery set the steaming hot cup of coffee in front of her and awkwardly patted her back.

"It's alright, it was just a dream."

Valkyrie took a sip of her coffee, not noticing when the burning liquid scalded her tongue.

"But that wasn't all. As soon as everybody was killed and everything was destroyed, Darquesse disappeared and I came back. I was surrounded by the ruins of the world alone, until I died as well."

Valkyrie's voice was surprisingly calm when she relayed this information to Skulduggery.

He scooted his chair nearer to hers.

"What's troubling you the most?"

She hesitated.

"Valkyrie, please."

"It wasn't forever. We weren't until the end. We won't be until the end. Eventually, one of us will die, and I don't want to be alone."

"You won't be. I'll always come follow you, though hell should bar the way."

Valkyrie gave a choking sob.

"Don't quote_ The Highwayman_ at me. Besides, there's no such thing as forever."

"I'll stay with you until the end, even if it's my own."

"Don't promise things that you can't keep."

"I can keep this one."

"Until the end?"

"Until the end."

Both of them ignored the hidden meaning embedded in the words.

Until the end.

_I love you_.

* * *

Again, a very pointless one-shot that I'll probably never look at again.

-ravenwings52


	13. Chapter 13

Songfic: Lucky by Jason Mraz, AU depressing

13. Lucky

_I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend_

Skulduggery was lucky at the time, though he didn't know it. He had had her in every way except for the obvious. He should of told her then. But he didn't, so he would have to tell her when he found her again.

_Lucky to have been where I have been_

He had been lucky to have been able to spend that much time with her, to have been able to see her every day. To have been one of the few people to hear her beautiful laugh or watch her radiant smile.

_Lucky to have been coming home again_

Now, he would either bring her back or follow her home. He couldn't bring her back, not this time. So he would follow her. Until the end.

_Lucky we're in love in every way_

Valkyrie had been lucky to have been in love with her best friend. They hadn't called it love, but they had both known it was there. She just wished that they had acted on it.

_Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed_

She was lucky that they both still loved each other. Valkyrie knew that they would see each other again. He had promised that he would follow her.

_Lucky to be coming home someday_

She just had to wait for him to come home. So Valkyrie Cain waited for Skulduggery Pleasant in the afterlife. She would always wait. Until the end.

* * *

My first songfic!

-ravenwings52


	14. Chapter 14

AU end of the world songfic

Pompeii by Bastille

14. Pompeii

_I was left to my own devices_

_Many days fell away with nothing to show_

Valkyrie had been allowed to stay in the sorcerer world for this long. But now, she'd pay for choosing both lives.

_And the walls kept tumbling down_

_In the city that we love_

The city was unrecognizable now, a completely destroyed pile of debris. She never looked back, moving on to the next town. And the next.

_Great clouds roll over the hills_

_Bringing darkness from above_

The sky had become a stormy black, foreshadowing what was to come.

_But if you close your eyes,_

_Does it almost feel like_

_Nothing changed at all?_

When she closed her eyes, she looked exactly like Valkyrie. But she wasn't.

_And if you close your eyes,_

_Does it almost feel like_

_You've been here before?_

They had all seen the visions, but had never thought that it would've happened. Well, now it was.

_How am I gonna be an optimist about this?_

They were giving up now. She frowned. It wouldn't be fun if they stopped trying.

_How am I gonna be an optimist about this?_

Darquesse stopped for the day. They had hoped. And then she came back.

_We were caught up and lost in all of our vices_

_In your pose as the dust settled around us_

So many elementals tried to save themselves using earth magic. It didn't help. She exploded them with a flick of her fingers.

_And the walls kept tumbling down_

_In the city that we love_

Skulduggery pulled himself out of the dust. He had to find her.

_Great clouds roll over the hills_

_Bringing darkness from above_

The ground was painted with blood and the sky reflected the shadows she left behind.

_But if you close your eyes,_

_Does it almost feel like_

_Nothing changed at all?_

He closed his nonexistent eyes and tried to forget Darquesse and remember Valkyrie. Darquesse and Valkyrie weren't the same people.

_And if you close your eyes,_

_Does it almost feel like_

_You've been here before?_

"But we are the same person, Skulduggery."

Darquesse grinned at him from behind.

"Darquesse. Give her back."

"This seems familiar. Let me think... No."

_How am I gonna be an optimist about this?_

Skulduggery pulled his gun out and aimed it at her head.

"Give her back."

"You know, if you shoot me, then she'll die too."

He didn't believe her.

_How am I gonna be an optimist about this?_

He shot her.

Darquesse smiled, and crumpled to the ground. The final and cruelest game yet. A pool of blood poured from the teenage girl's head.

_Oh where do we begin?_

_The rubble or our sins?_

He shouldn't have shot her. As he cradled her head in his lap, he spoke. He reminded her of how she couldn't leave him now. Valkyrie's body went still.

_Oh oh where do we begin?_

_The rubble or our sins?_

Skulduggery went numb. She was gone. Gone.

_And the walls kept tumbling down (oh where do we begin?)_

_In the city that we love (the rubble or our sins?)_

They began to rebuild the city.

_Great clouds roll over the hills (oh where do we begin?)_

_Bringing darkness from above (the rubble or our sins?)_

There was too many dead bodies. They had to burn them. The ashes rose to the clouds, reminding every survivor of their lost ones.

_But if you close your eyes,_

_Does it almost feel like_

_Nothing changed at all?_

Skulduggery watched the flames flicker, but he didn't see anything. He couldn't feel anything. All he could do was remember the smile frozen on her face as she died.

_And if you close your eyes,_

_Does it almost feel like_

_You've been here before?_

It was like the war, but this time Valkyrie was gone.

_How am I gonna be an optimist about this?_

He would help them piece their lives back together.

_How am I gonna be an optimist about this?_

And then the great skeleton detective would leave for the very last time.

_If you close your eyes, does it almost feel like nothing changed at all?_

* * *

Yeah...

All my drabbles are so depressing! Review and inspire me to get some happy fluff in there!

-ravenwings52


	15. Chapter 15

15. Five Times Skulduggery Stood In The Rain With Valkyrie And One Time She Stood Alone

1.

"Skulduggery," Valkyrie began.

Skulduggery glared at her.

"You do realize that we're on a stakeout and we're trying not to get caught?"

Valkyrie glared back.

"It's raining and we're sitting in a wet hedge at 2 in the morning! I don't bloody care whether we get caught or not!"

A man peeked over the hedge where the two detectives were crouched quite suspiciously.

"Never mind; I think I do care if we get caught!"

The two didn't stop running until they got to Gordon's house.

2.

"I'm fine," Valkyrie sniffled as they stood in the rain at the bus stop. Both detectives were soaked to the skin, and they had no means by which to get home. The Bentley was in the repair shop, and the rental car- Valkyrie had dubbed this one the Bloody Wreck as it had been an appalling shade of bright red and looked like it was about to fall apart any second- had literally become a bloody wreck.

As it was getting late, they had been forced to wait at the bus stop to "get on an unhygienic, crowded, rusty piece of junk full of people" as Skulduggery had stated it.

Skulduggery didn't like buses.

Anyways, it was raining, it was cold, and Valkyrie was sniffling. Skulduggery glanced over at the tall girl standing beside him.

"A-are you all right?" Skulduggery breached the subject carefully, not quite sure what to do in this situation.

Valkyrie snapped back irritably.

"Of course I'm all right! It's cold and pouring and my socks are wet and the bus hasn't come yet!"

Skulduggery was quiet for a moment. Then Valkyrie coughed.

"Are you sure you're all right?" He asked suspiciously.

"Ye- achoo!"

Skulduggery was worried now. Valkyrie never sneezed.

"Valkyrie, we're going to get you home."

"But the bus isn't here yet!"

"You're sick. You need to get home."

"It's just a cold!"

"So you're admitting that you're sick?"

Valkyrie froze. Skulduggery took that as an opportunity to scoop the girl up. He manipulated the air around them, and exalted in the rush of air as he flew up above the clouds and down to Gordon's.

After a short silence, he spoke.

"You'll be fine."

Valkyrie didn't answer.

Skulduggery looked down. She was snoring softly, head on his shoulder. She murmured something that sounded a lot like 'Mum' and snuggled closer to his jacket. Skulduggery smiled softly as the rain traced the lined on her face. Valkyrie was decidedly more agreeable when asleep.

Valkyrie coughed hoarsely.

Maybe he'd get her in bed first, and then blackmail her.

3.

"Hat. Now."

"No."

"It's raining. I'm getting wet."

"But if I give you my hat, _I'll_ get wet!"

He got wet anyways.

4.

"Skulduggery! Look! It's raining!" The twelve-year-old girl gestured excitedly at the window.

Skulduggery continued to read the newspaper.

"I can see that."

"Well? What're you waiting for, then?"

"What do you mean?"

Skulduggery only had the time to set his paper down before Valkyrie yanked him outside.

"Valkyrie!"

"You said that you'd teach me how to dance."

"I thought you didn't want to."

"Yes, but this way you'll be miserable too."

"I meant that we would dance inside where it's warm and dry and wonderful."

She ignored him, and started twirling around, laughing, rain running down her cheeks and outstretched arms.

He taught her outside.

5.

"Skulduggery, are you okay?"

Skulduggery stumbled to his feet as black eyes looked into his eye sockets. Valkyrie leaned over him, concerned. No, not Valkyrie. She had been Darquesse when he was knocked out, she was probably Darquesse still.

The sky was covered with dark clouds, and lightning flashed in the distance. Tears fell from above, onto the ground which was littered with corpses and covered with blood. Skulduggery felt dizzy- that couldn't be Ghastly's head over there, oh god no...

"Skulduggery?"

Skulduggery backed up and scooped up a gun. He pried the body's fingers off of the wet metal. Was it just rain or blood he was feeling...? He wasn't going to look at the face. He wasn't.

"You're not Valkyrie. Stay away, or I'll shoot."

His voice carried a slight tremor. There were so many bodies; too many...

Valkyrie's eyes widened.

"God, you think I'm still her," she breathed out. "You think I'm going to kill you."

Skulduggery looked away for a moment.

"Shoot me."

He whipped his head around.

"What?"

"Shoot me. I'm going to destroy the world; I just killed all of them." She gestured towards the bodies.

It felt too surreal. Two survivors in the rain, one pleading for the other to kill her.

He aimed his gun slowly, unable to lift his gaze to meet her beautiful brown eyes. No. Not brown, black. He dropped his gun as he stared at her face.

Black eyes. Dark eyes. Darquesse's eyes.

He tried to stop her. Make Valkyrie come back. But she tore him apart, bone by bone by bone. And then she pressed her lips onto his teeth for one beautiful, lethal second before letting his skull drop and shatter on the ground. She left laughing, and didn't return to the broken skeleton that she abandoned in the rain with only the dead to talk to.

1.

It was over, the war. They were all gone. Nobody would threaten her anymore. She could do whatever she wanted.

And yet she sat at the very top of Big Ben, the only building left standing in this miserable wreck, waiting. For what exactly, she didn't know. Maybe for them to come back. Maybe for him to come back.

But he wouldn't. Her heart lay among the shattered bones. She had taken his life, and in the process given him her heart. Darquesse was broken.

So she let the rain drip from her eyes.

They weren't tears.

Darquesse didn't cry.


	16. Chapter 16

16. Rainbow

Red

Valkyrie separated her life into two categories: Before Skulduggery and After Skulduggery. Before Skulduggery was when Valkyrie Cain had been Stephanie Edgley. Before Skulduggery was when she had been nice and didn't lie to her parents on a day to day basis. Before Skulduggery had been safe. And boring.

After Skulduggery was when Stephanie Edgley became Valkyrie Cain. After Skulduggery was she had stopped being so nice. After Skulduggery was when danger had come; and with it, excitement.

But there were some other small differences between Before Skulduggery and After Skulduggery. For example, when she had been Stephanie she kept her her hair in a ponytail. Now she let it be free. But a bigger difference was Valkyrie's view on the color red.

During Before Skulduggery, red had been the color of apples and lipstick and her mum's favorite dress. After Skulduggery only had blood. Fresh, red blood. Darker, dried blood. All red.

Valkyrie didn't like the color red as much anymore, because blood seeped through her jacket sleeves and into her skin. She could always wash the blood off, but never completely. There was always some red, staining her inside, screaming that she was a killer; that the blood would always flow and it would be because of her, her magic, her hands.

Her life was soaking with red, and her hands dripped with it. That was the worst part of being Valkyrie Cain.

All of the red.

Orange

After Skulduggery had orange mixed in with the red.

The orange was beautiful and frightening, so delicate but powerful. It was the fire, the magic. The flames flickering whenever she clicked her fingers, the fighting spark inside of her. It was so dangerous and fascinating, the warmest part of her soul. It burned when she was angry, and glowed when she was content.

Whenever her magic was bound, Valkyrie felt a hint of panic, as she couldn't feel the orange waiting impatiently in her fingertips. Orange was a part of her, as much as the red was.

The orange was one of the best things about After Skulduggery. In Before Skulduggery, orange had been so mundane, the color of fall or a tangerine or a ribbon.

Yes, orange was definitely one of the best parts about After Skulduggery.

Yellow

Yellow hadn't been very special during Before Skulduggery, and it wasn't very special now.

And then the man with the golden eyes had betrayed them.

Gold was a form of yellow, wasn't it?

Suddenly, Valkyrie hated the yellow, the golden light that followed her everywhere, trying to chase away her shadows, her armor.

Yellow seemed a lot better when it had been honey and lemons and sunshine.

Green

Green was the stab of jealousy that she felt right through the heart whenever she saw a couple.

She wasn't jealous of the girl or the guy themselves; no, the jealousy she felt was the lack of love she had. It happened during Before Skulduggery and After Skulduggery, but it affected her the most during After Skulduggery. She never got that special connection with anybody. She never really loved Fletcher, and she had never dated Caelan. Hansard Kray was never really interested in her.

Valkyrie couldn't believe that she was jealous over her lack of a soul mate.

But the green still poisoned her thoughts and her heart grew bitter and cold because of the red and the yellow and the green. Only the orange kept her the same.

Then Skulduggery took the green away, and only the red and the yellow plagued her.

Blue

Blue was both good and bad. When she had been Stephanie Edgley, it had been just another color, sandwiched between green and purple. Now, it was the color of Skulduggery's suits and the freezing water and the night and sadness. It balanced out the red and the yellow and took away the green, but it dampened the orange.

Blue somehow found a way to sneak its way into her heart, to weave between all the other colors tangled into a knot. Most of the times, the colors were too confusing and chaotic to let the blue in, but occasionally, it sorted all the reds and oranges and yellows and greens out and slid its way down her cheeks.

But she was Valkyrie Cain, so the blue was tucked away again, where it would hide until everybody was gone and she was alone and the blue just poured out.

Skulduggery could never see the blue.

Purple

After Skulduggery didn't have much purple. The most purple was Skulduggery's tie and the old rental car and a couple of the symbols in China's library. Before Skulduggery didn't have much purple either; just her algebra textbook looming in the corner or necklace her parents had gotten her for graduation.

But when there was purple, it was majestic. It swept all of the other colors away in one exhilarating moment, dizzying and confusing and powerful. It was rare and full of an explosive, reckless joy.

Most assumed that when Darquesse appeared, the colors became black as sin, but they were so, so wrong.

Darquesse was purple. The richest, darkest purple. The very best kind.

And that was why Valkyrie feared and craved purple.

White

White was what Before Skulduggery had. Pure and innocent and clean.

After Skulduggery had white too, but a different kind. After Skulduggery white was Skulduggery's ivory bones or the bleak white of death or the blinding flash of an explosion.

White was twisted and warped, pretending to be kind and honest, but hiding so many terrible secrets.

And you could never completely wash out all of the red from a white heart.

Black

After Skulduggery was filled with black. Shadows and Darquesse's eyes and death.

Black was better than white. It didn't pretend to tell the truth, and it told you that it concealed everything right from the start. It hid everywhere, and the light could never keep it away for long. It was an empty void full of terrible things.

So Valkyrie dyed her soul black, and her heart even darker than that.

Because even though red couldn't be washed away, you could always conceal it with black.


	17. Chapter 17

Based off of topic/44309/57910578/1/ but for Valduggery

17. 100 reasons why Valduggery works

Skulduggery could define beauty in one word: Valkyrie.

Love only hurt. It was a good thing that they were both accustomed to torture, then.

She never had dreams anymore, only nightmares; but every time she woke up he was there.

They would always be haunted by the words unspoken.

Valkyrie chose to forget. Skulduggery chose to remember.

Valkyrie always hid her fragile side from him.

He always remembered to celebrate her birthday.

Both of them knew all of the other's secrets except for the most important one concerning them.

Until the end. _I love you_.

Stephanie was never innocent to begin with; Skulduggery just confirmed it for her.

He couldn't help but stare at her in the moonlight.

There were many whispered rumors about them, none of them confirmed.

Memories were like echoes; growing softer and softer until they just faded away.

Skulduggery was jealous of Fletcher Renn and hated himself for that.

Their love wasn't the passionate kind; it was the quiet, unspoken, steady type.

Valkyrie lied when she said that she liked Fletcher. Her heart had already been stolen by another.

He regretted never telling her. Now she was dead, and he would never get to tell her his last secret.

They trusted one another with their lives.

Someday, Valkyrie would get her revenge on Skulduggery for the eight-armed octopus people story.

They never got to go to the beach for fun.

It was the best time of the night, when Skulduggery would stay for a moment just to talk.

"Valkyrie, you're an amazing person and I love you," Skulduggery confessed to his mirror.

Valkyrie definitely did not have a crush on her best friend.

Valkyrie din't say a word to Skulduggery when she got a box of chocolates from a "secret admirer" on Valentine's Day, even though it was clearly the Skeleton's handwriting.

Skulduggery would never be able to stand being alone after Valkyrie.

Skulduggery visited her grave when it was raining.

Valkyrie thought letters to be old-fashioned, but she didn't protest when Skulduggery suggested that they correspond that way when she went to college.

Skulduggery took care of her when she got a cold, and she took his hat as a thank you.

Their souls were both so twisted and dark. Maybe that's why they were friends.

Valkyrie was addicted to the adrenaline rush she felt when fighting at Skulduggery's side.

Valkyrie was allergic to flowers. Skulduggery wished that she had told him that before she tried to murder him.

Valkyrie hated the snow until Skulduggery offered her his jacket.

Valkyrie could never resist the temptation of taking Skulduggery's hat.

Valkyrie loved the fiery colors of autumn the best and Skulduggery loved her in autumn.

They shared a special bond that united them.

Valkyrie was hurt often in her line of work, but nothing hurt more than her heart.

"I'm sorry, Skulduggery. I did it. I wrecked the Bentley."

When she flashed him that roguish grin of hers, his heart was stolen.

Skulduggery couldn't drink champagne so Valkyrie didn't either.

Again, the allergies to flowers thing was never explained to him until after he had gotten them for her.

She hated it, so he got her the most sparkly hat imaginable for Christmas.

Valkyrie was fearless, until it came to expressing her feelings.

"So, will you?"

"Yes, Skulduggery, I'll give you your hat back for my phone."

He couldn't remember what life was like when they weren't together.

Whenever Valkyrie was heartbroken, Skulduggery fixed it for her but shattered his.

Skulduggery was at a loss for words when he saw her at their wedding day.

They always celebrated Christmas.

Why did she have to be allergic to flowers of all things?

Her eyes sparkled.

She was absolutely magical.

Valkyrie loved the fire. He loved the way she looked with fire.

There were always consequences, and this was the thunder following the lightning.

She preferred chocolate ice cream over vanilla, or so she claimed. Skulduggery had a sneaking suspicion that it was because chocolate was the most expensive flavor there.

He was a broken man and she was a broken girl.

They said forever. She still died.

He hoped that he wasn't a figment of his own imagination, because that would mean that she wasn't real.

They could communicate silently.

He couldn't help it, but already his memories of her were fading.

She shined so brightly from the inside, even though she claimed only darkness lay within.

The sun was too bright for her. She preferred the shadows, where Skulduggery was.

There would always be theories on how they got together. Only Valkyrie or Skulduggery knew the truth to any of the rumours.

She thought they were annoying. He agreed.

She looked stunning in red.

She would never doubt him.

They would always be there for each other.

She thought that he was perfect, but somehow she called him a perfect idiot instead.

She felt butterflies in her stomach whenever she saw him.

She kissed his facade, and then his skull.

He tried to be subtle, but she just couldn't take a hint.

"Valkyrie, you're supposed to hit them, now!"

Life without him was a nightmare.

She kissed him on his cheek. He kissed her on the lips.

She didn't wear lockets or any type of jewelry until he gave it to her.

Whenever they played Mercy, Valkyrie always lost.

After he forgot her flower allergies again, he started to hate the darned flowers. He really did. Who thought that flower-giving was romantic, anyways?

She finally fell. Deeply and madly in love with him.

She held the key to his heart, though she didn't know it.

"I hate you!"

"It's hard to distinguish between hatred and love, dear."

Her emotions were a rainbow of colors.

He handed her a diamond ring and she stared.

"It's what the thief stole."

"I thought he stole the necklace?"

"The thief was you. You stole my heart. Will you marry me?"

Valkyrie was a truthful drunk, which made for some very awkward conversation the next day.

Valkyrie always let her balloons go and watched them sail away free. Sometimes she wished that she could follow them, until Skulduggery brought her back down to earth.

She never let him see her tears.

He called her sunshine once. That was the first and last time he ever attempted nicknames again.

She smelled like cinnamon.

She had been lonely until she met him.

She preferred his bones to the facade.

She hated having to shake the pebbles out of her boots after a case, but it was worth it.

She always managed to surprise him.

He had a certain magnetic pull that caused lives to gravitate around him.

She was wild and free and beautiful.

He was never going to look at another flower again.

There had always been something missing. Valkyrie found it when she met him.

He stared intently at her.

"Do you... have a 3?"

"Go fish."

He would teach her how to fly every Saturday.

They were lost in the forest being chased by werewolves, but Valkyrie decided that it could be worse. After all, she could be here without Skulduggery.

"How could you have given Tanith my hat!?"

"I'm sorry for not telling you that you were the greatest person I ever met. You were the strongest, bravest, and most beautiful girl ever. And now you're dead. I'm sorry for loving you."

Those snapshots, those little moments, were the defining points in their relationship.

It was an unspoken taboo, that you never took the Bentley for a joyride. Apparently Valkyrie didn't get the memo.

There was an endless horizon full of adventures waiting for them.

* * *

That took me forever.

-ravenwings52


	18. Chapter 18

Skulduggery was rudely interrupted from his meditative state by somebody banging Für Elise out on the piano upstairs. Practically everybody had been at his house last night for a New Years Party. He hadn't wanted the party to be at his house (in fact, he didn't think that there should've been a party at all) but as his house was the only large and available location at the moment (China's library still hadn't been rebuilt, Gordon's place was occupied by Valkyrie's family, and the Sanctuary had been exploded again) he had been pressured into hosting the party. He tried to block the noise out, but the annoying tune kept on repeating over and over and over again. Finally, Skulduggery yelled,  
"Whoever's making that racket, stop it!" The piano playing stopped for a moment, then continued to finish the melody. For the fifth time in a row. He finally stomped up the stairs, intent on finding out who was making such an infernal sound so early in the morning.

As he navigated the many rooms of his house, he passed by many unconscious bodies sprawled on the floor. He could've sworn that Tipstaff was drunk in the corner, and Dexter Vex was most likely going to have a nasty hangover when he woke up. And what had possessed him to allow alcohol in a room of powerful sorcerers?

Anyways, the piano. As Skulduggery neared the room, the constant playing started to drive him crazy. He stood outside of the door and thrust it open.

"Valkyrie?!"

Said sorcerer leapt away from the piano as if the keys had burned her fingers.

"Skulduggery! Um. Morning!"

"I didn't know you could play the piano. Rather poorly, might I add."

"Meh. Two years from third to fourth grade of piano lessons. Mum let me quit after I socked the instructor."

"I see."

A thought occurred to him.

"How come you're not asleep like all the others?"

"I'm a light sleeper, and I can't drink. I'm only 17, remember?"

"Oh. Yes. What possessed you to play so early in the morning?"

"I was bored."

Skulduggery sighed. Now that she had stopped playing, the house felt too quiet. He sat down at the piano.

"Oh, come over here." He patted the space on the piano bench next to him.

She looked surprised.

"I'm going to teach you how to play the piano without making me want to shoot myself."

She scowled.

* * *

Ten minutes later, everybody within a mile radius was woken up to the two detectives playing the most annoying possible rendition of chopsticks.

* * *

Lolz.

This was going to be all fluffy and whatnot, but then Valkyrie wasn't going to sit nicely and listen to Skulduggery compose some romantic whatever dedicated to her.

On a completely different note, I have observed that only 4 people have reviewed out of 100+ visitors. Are you all dying off after you read my fic or something?

-ravenwings52


	19. Chapter 19

I decided that there wasn't enough China Sorrows.

Set from Before Skulduggery's Family Died until After Darquesse.

Based off of Someone Like You by Adele

19. Someone Like You

_I heard that you're settled down_

_That you found a girl and you're married now._

China Sorrows' carefully constructed mask had slipped for a moment when she found out that Skulduggery had married the shy Ameli Farouche.

_I heard that your dreams came true._

_Guess she gave you things I didn't give to you._

Her teacup had shattered on the ground into a million pieces of unrecognizable porcelain.

_Old friend, why are you so shy?_

_Ain't like you to hold back or hide from the light._

He had changed. Now he had a wife who could soothe his tempers and return his love.

_I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited_

_But I couldn't stay away, I couldn't fight it._

She had visited once. He had invited her to come in; except when she looked past him and saw his lovely, fragile wife and their newborn child, she knew that she wasn't a part of his life anymore.

_I had hoped you'd see my face and that you'd be reminded_

_That for me it isn't over._

No, she would fade into the background, but she would wait. Unrequited love was painful.

_Never mind, I'll find someone like you_

_I wish nothing but the best for you too_

China had tried to forget. She had met some interesting men, like Ekon Mace and Ivan Raban, but they weren't him.

_Don't forget me, I beg_

_I remember you said,_

China let herself utter eight words when she stood at his doorstep for the last time.

_"Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead,_

"Goodbye. Perhaps our paths will cross again someday."

_Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead"_

Please don't forget me or the memories we made. Maybe I'll have a chance someday.

_You know how the time flies_

_Only yesterday was the time of our lives_

She remembered everything like it was yesterday.

_We were born and raised_

_In a summer haze_

_Bound by the surprise of our glory days_

Careful negotiations being made. Dancing with him in the rain. Their first and last kiss.

_I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited_

_But I couldn't stay away, I couldn't fight it._

Their paths did cross again, but not in the way she wanted it to be.

_I'd hoped you'd see my face and that you'd be reminded_

_That for me it isn't over._

She didn't tell him how she had betrayed him, how she had led his wife into the trap that had led to his demise. She wouldn't be able to stand that hatred that she knew would be portrayed quite clearly on his face.

_Never mind, I'll find someone like you_

_I wish nothing but the best for you too_

When he came back as a skeleton, China couldn't help it. Her emotions still prevailed. She knew that she would always love him.

_Don't forget me, I beg_

_I remember you said,_

She begged him to remember her when her secret was revealed. Even if she hadn't killed his wife, she would never have had a chance.

_"Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead."_

The first time, his heart had been stolen by the delicate Ameli Farouche. The second time, the brave and scarred Valkyrie Cain claimed what was left of his soul.

_Nothing compares_

_No worries or cares_

Nothing would ever make her feel the same way again.

_Regrets and mistakes_

_They are memories made._

She regretted every second of it, watching them all die. First, his bright-eyed child. The girl had been at the tender age of ten, yet she was tortured by Serpine for too long before bring put out of her misery. Ameli had been next, her heart fluttering to a stop when the agony had become too great. And finally, Skulduggery had died with the hatred burning him up from the inside, his fury still sustained when the light had left his beautiful blue eyes.

_Who would have known how bittersweet this would taste?_

And when she finally had had a chance, Skulduggery had already been taken. Though he hadn't known at the time, China could tell that she meant the world to him.

_Never mind, I'll find someone like you_

_I wish nothing but the best for you too_

China finally forfeited. He wouldn't ever love her. Valkyrie was the one he needed; she would protect him and give him a reason to survive.

_Don't forget me, I beg_

_I remember you said,_

But she could always hope. After all, the feelings never truly went away.

_"Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead."_

It hurt.

_Never mind, I'll find someone like you_

_I wish nothing but the best for you too_

Before she left, she made Valkyrie promise to always stay by his side. Valkyrie had hugged her.

_Don't forget me, I beg_

_I remember you said,_

She didn't tell them where she was going. They would remember her.

_"Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead,_

She ran away. She ran away from the pain. From the love.

_Sometimes it lasts in love but sometimes it hurts instead."_

From him.

* * *

China got kinda OOC there...

-ravenwings52


	20. Chapter 20

"Are you okay?"

Valkyrie turned her head slightly so she could face Skulduggery. Even that small movement sent jolts of pain all over, especially near her heart.

"I got zapped by some lightning-wielding Adept in the heart and was an inch away from death. What do you think?"

Skulduggery didn't speak for a bit.

"Does it hurt?"

_Yes, Skulduggery. It hurts. Every single second that I have to lie to their faces, every time I can feel the distance between my family and I, it hits a bit closer to my heart. It hurts so much, but I can't tell. Never. And eventually, it'll hit home like the lightning did but this time you won't be able to save me because you can't save anybody from love. It's worse when I watch everybody I know fall, one by one, and I can't do anything except for stand on the sidelines and watch. Someday, you'll be the one that falls and all that I'll be able to do is watch. It hurts so bloody much._

"I'm fine."

Valkyrie turned her head away again so she wouldn't have to see him watching sadly.

* * *

He knows that she's lying. She always had to mask the pain, to put up a brave front with him, to prove to herself that she's indestructible.

But she's not. She's made of glass, shattered on the inside, and he can't help. He can only watch as she slowly destroys herself.

It hurts him to see how haunted she looks after every battle, hiding the agony she goes through externally and internally. It hurts him when he notices her retreating into herself when he tries to help. It hurts him so much.

"Okay, Valkyrie. I'll visit you tomorrow."

* * *

I can't write fluff anymore!

Help me by requesting stuff!

-ravenwings52


	21. Chapter 21

They all assumed that the great skeleton detective and his infamous partner loved each other. It seemed so obvious, Valkyrie and Skulduggery's willingness to sacrifice everything they had to protect the other. And they were right, in a way. She couldn't deny that they shared a special bond and understanding, but their love was twisted and horrible to the point of being almost unrecognizable. In fact, it wasn't love, it was a bitter hatred. Everybody thought that they were perfect together because of how similar they were, but that was the reason why they abhorred each other so much. Every word he spoke, all the pent-up anger inside of him, every single flaw was a reflection of herself. Everyone hates their flaws; no one wants to be reminded of how furious, how uncivilized, how cruel and twisted they could be every time they see their partner. Their best friend.

Nobody understood why Skulduggery married Ameli Farouche except for Valkyrie. The two had had absolutely nothing in common, so they didn't seem compatible to all the rest. But they had loved each other. Why? Because they had compensated for the other's weaknesses. Because Skulduggery could protect her and she could calm his tempers. Because he taught her how to defend herself, and in return, she taught him how to love. They completed each other.

Valkyrie and Skulduggery were too similar. Their souls were too dark, and their love too convoluted. They hated each other-themselves-so much. There was a fine line between love and hate, and they were running across it with reckless abandon.

* * *

*yelps*

Don't hate me! I ship Valduggery! Honest! I really do!

Review please!

-ravenwings52


	22. Chapter 22

This would've fit better with Beauty and the Beast, but I don't do fairy tales. Or do I?

Based off of Let Her Go by Passenger

22. Let Her Go

_Well you only need the light when it's burning low  
_

She had been his light.

_Only miss the sun when it starts to snow_

The world was darker without her.

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

He didn't know how much he needed her until she left.

_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low_

He didn't fly anymore.

_Only hate the road when you're missin' home_

His Bentley sat neglected in his driveway.

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

Why did she have to leave?

_And you let her go_

Why did he let her leave?

_Staring at the bottom of your glass_

Skulduggery couldn't numb the pain. He was a skeleton, after all.

_Hoping one day you'll make a dream last_

He hadn't wanted much, except to keep her by his side. All three of them: Ameli, his wife. Abigail, their child. Valkyrie, his partner.

_But dreams come slow and they go so fast_

They all came so slow and left so fast.

_You see her when you close your eyes_

He saw her everywhere. On the couch, in the Bentley, in her room. Mostly, how beautiful she looked even as the blood and life ran from her body.

_Maybe one day you'll understand why_

He didn't know why she had to leave him.

_Everything you touch surely dies_

Maybe it was killing her, staying with him. Maybe all it took for her to give up and leave was a knife.

_But you only need the light when it's burning low_

He needed her to keep him sane.

_Only miss the sun when it starts to snow_

He missed her too much. Not enough.

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

He let her go because he loved her.

_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low_

He didn't know how lucky he had been until he had sunken this low.

_Only hate the road when you're missin' home_

Everything reminded him of her. He hated it.

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

He had given her up because she asked him to, but it didn't make it any easier.

_Staring at the ceiling in the dark_

He stayed up all night every night, replaying her death from all those years ago.

_Same old empty feeling in your heart_

It still hurt, even though he didn't have a heart.

_'Cause love comes slow and it goes so fast_

It had taken hundreds of years for him to love again and it took a decade for her to die.

_Well you see her when you fall asleep_

He saw her when he tried to meditate.

_But never to touch and never to keep_

Every time he tried to hold on they left.

_'Cause you loved her too much_

He had cared. He shouldn't have loved.

_And you dived too deep_

He had become too involved.

_Well you only need the light when it's burning low_

_Only miss the sun when it starts to snow_

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low_

_Only hate the road when you're missin' home_

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

_And you let her go (oh, oh, ooh, oh no)_

_And you let her go (oh, oh, ooh, oh no)_

_Will you let her go?_

_'Cause you only need the light when it's burning low_

_Only miss the sun when it starts to snow_

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low_

_Only hate the road when you're missin' home_

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

_'Cause you only need the light when it's burning low_

_Only miss the sun when it starts to snow_

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low_

_Only hate the road when you're missin' home_

_Only know you love her when you let her go_

He loved her.

She died in his arms.

He didn't hold on to her.

So she left.

_And you let her go_


	23. Chapter 23

This one's Skulduggery-centric! Based off of Titanium by David Guetta.

23. Titanium

_[Sia:]_

_You shout it out_

_But I can't hear a word you say_

Everything was red. Skulduggery could feel his heart pounding and his vision hazy by tears threatening to fall as he slowly pushed himself off of the ground. He saw a limp figure on the ground out of the corner of his eyes- his wife. No. Not his wife. Just another dead body.

_I'm talking loud not saying much_

_I'm criticized_

He screamed. He couldn't hear himself- the anger was burning him from the inside. All he could see was Serpine. Serpine... And a knife.

_But all your bullets ricochet_

_Shoot me down, but I get up_

He rushed him, rushing to grab the dagger from Serpine's belt. Skulduggery's legs ached and his body was giving out from exhaustion, but he kept going.

_I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose_

_Fire away, fire away_

He didn't have anything else to lose.

_Ricochet, you take your aim_

_Fire away, fire away_

Only when his fingers curled around the poisoned hilt did Skulduggery realize his mistake. And he paid for it.

_[Chorus:]_

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

But he came back.

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

Gasping as he awoke, alive again, but not. He was no longer himself, no longer flesh and blood. He was bone.

_[Sia:]_

_Cut me down_

_But it's you who'll have further to fall_

Being a skeleton had its benefits. He couldn't be hurt by most things, for one.

_Ghost town and haunted love_

_Raise your voice, sticks and stones may break my bones_

But there was always something to haunt him.

_I'm talking loud not saying much_

_I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose_

So he ran away. He hid himself under his facade, using his ego to mask the pain. He built up a reputation.

_Fire away, fire away_

_Ricochet, you take your aim_

Nothing would hurt him the same way again. He couldn't love without a heart, right?

_Fire away, fire away_

_[Chorus:]_

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

He was invincible, the man no one could kill.

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

The great skeleton detective who had come back from the dead. The one who had saved them all.

_I am titanium_

_I am titanium_

They never knew all his secrets, and he would never tell.

_[Sia:]_

_Stone-hard, machine gun_

_Firing at the ones who run_

And so he continued to fight through the centuries, trying to make up for the lives lost. Throwing himself into his work, because without it he would fall deeper into the hole he'd dug.

_Stone-hard as bulletproof glass_

_[Chorus:]_

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

He was invulnerable. Alone. And alone protected him.

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

He didn't need anybody. He fooled himself, and fooled them all.

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

He was half-alive, barely holding on to his sanity. But he held on.

_You shoot me down but I won't fall_

_I am titanium_

He was fine by himself. He was always fine by himself. And it would've stayed that way, Skulduggery struggling alone until he broke.

_I am titanium_

And then he met Valkyrie Cain.

* * *

Yeah, yeah. I know. I've been neglecting you guys.

But I met doctor who...!

-ravenwings52


	24. Chapter 24

In which they all die. Based off of Skyfall by Adele._  
_

24. Skyfall

_This is the end_

_Hold your breath and count to ten_

They were all dying, one by one.

_Feel the earth move and then_

_Hear my heart burst again_

Dexter Vex had died when the bomb had gone off. His blood spattered the walls, but only his. The rest had evacuated except for him.

_For this is the end_

_I've drowned and dreamt this moment_

Anton Shudder had drowned, distracting the kelpie for them.

_So overdue I owe them_

_Swept away, I'm stolen_

Erskine had fallen over the cliff's edge, his remains swept away by the river below.

_Let the sky fall_

_When it crumbles_

_We will stand tall_

_Face it all together_

Just a couple of them were left, the last line of defense.

_Let the sky fall_

_When it crumbles_

_We will stand tall_

_Face it all together_

_At skyfall_

The sky had literally shattered when the portal opened; thousands of Faceless Ones had passed into this world from theirs.

_That skyfall_

_Skyfall is where we start_

Everybody had been thrown into a world of chaos and bloodshed; they were the last survivors.

_A thousand miles and poles apart_

_Where worlds collide and days are dark_

China Sorrows had ended up stranded in the Faceless Ones' dimension. Her screams still haunted their minds.

_You may have my number, you can take my name_

_But you'll never have my heart_

Fletcher Renn had been possessed by a remnant, but this time, Doctor Nye wasn't around to save him like Tanith. Skulduggery had shot him before he could kill Valkyrie_._

_Let the sky fall (let the sky fall)_

_When it crumbles (when it crumbles)_

_We will stand tall (we will stand tall)_

_Face it all together_

There was just four of them now.

_Let the sky fall (let the sky fall)_

_When it crumbles (when it crumbles)_

_We will stand tall (we will stand tall)_

_Face it all together_

_At skyfall_

They knew that the odds were against them. They kept on fighting. They were Skulduggery Pleasant and Co., and they would achieve the impossible.

_[2x:]_

_(Let the sky fall_

_When it crumbles_

_We will stand tall)_

They were so tired. They tried to end it all multiple times. Tanith Low died trying to close the portal.

_Where you go I go_

_What you see I see_

Ghastly Bespoke died trying to save her.

_I know I'd never be me_

_Without the security_

Two were left, and were slowly going mad.

_Of your loving arms_

_Keeping me from harm_

The skeleton hugs kept Valkyrie alive. Her steady heartbeat kept Skulduggery sane.

_Put your hand in my hand_

_And we'll stand_

They gripped each others' hand one last time.

_Let the sky fall (let the sky fall)_

_When it crumbles (when it crumbles)_

_We will stand tall (we will stand tall)_

_Face it all together_

The fire rained and the darkness consumed, but they would survive. They always did. Partners until the end.

_Let the sky fall (let the sky fall)_

_When it crumbles (when it crumbles)_

_We will stand tall (we will stand tall)_

_Face it all together_

_At skyfall_

They were coming for them. They were always coming.

_Let the sky fall_

_We will stand tall_

They shifted into a battle stance.

_At skyfall_

"Ready?"

"Ready."

"Until the end."

_Oh_


	25. Chapter 25

Another song fic. High school AU based off of Just the Girl by The Click Five. One-sided Fletcheryie.

* * *

25. Just the Girl

_She's cold and she's cruel_

_But she knows what she's doin'_

She was beautiful. Beautiful and different.

_She pushed me in the pool_

_At our last school reunion_

Though she was high up in social pyramid, she had the weirdest friends; when he had asked her at the summer junior graduation party why she hung around the loser, Skulduggery Pleasant, she had shoved him into the pool.

_She laughs at my dreams_

_But I dream about her laughter_

She scoffed at the popular kids, like him. He wished that she could fit in; then she might return his affections. But he knew deep down that he wouldn't love her if she was normal.

_Strange as it seems_

_She's the one I'm after_

Nobody else understood why he would go after her when there were so many other fish in the metaphorical sea. Perhaps a couple of the outcasts did. But they didn't matter.

_[Chorus:]_

_'cause she's bittersweet_

_She knocks me off of my feet_

She punched him the last time he said hi.

_And I can't help myself_

_I don't want anyone else_

He had tried to date other girls like Myra, but they were never her.

_She's a mystery_

_She's too much for me_

Nobody really knew what her real name was. They just called her Valkyrie Cain. Even the teachers did.

_But I keep comin' back for more_

_She's just the girl I'm lookin' for_

He knew that she would never like him back, but he couldn't stay away.

_She can't keep a secret_

_For more than an hour_

Once he told her that his parents were divorced. Everybody knew it the next day.

_She runs on 100 proof attitude power_

_And the more she ignores me_

_The more I adore her_

He fell for her harder every time she turned away from him.

_What can I do?_

_I'd do anything for her_

He couldn't help it- he knew that he would give everything up if she asked her to.

_[Chorus]_

_And when she sees it's me_

_On her caller ID_

_She won't pick up the phone_

_She'd rather be alone_

She deleted all the voicemail, every text he had ever sent her, right in front of him.

_But I can't give up just yet_

_Cause every word she's ever said_

_Is still ringin' in my head_

_Still ringin' in my head_

But he couldn't give up because her words echoed in his mind.

'You are such a moron.'*

'You're definitely not a man of thought.'**

'Shut the hell up.'***

_She's cold and she's cruel_

_But she knows what she's doin'_

She was assertive. She never doubted herself.

_Knows just what to say_

_So my whole day is ruined_

One word from her lips could crush him. She knew that she could break him. And she did, every day.

_[Chorus]_

_Cause she's bittersweet_

_She knocks me off of my feet_

But the main reason why he stayed with her all these years was that sometimes, just occasionally, some of the warmth that was reserved for Skulduggery was directed towards him. A mischievous smile or a sparkle in her eyes was all it took for him to fall for her again.

_And I can't help myself_

_I don't want anyone else_

Every time, he fell harder. And his heart was shattered a little bit more

_She's a mystery_

_She's too much for me_

By the enigma that was Valkyrie Cain.

_But I keep comin' back for more_

But he kept on returning.

_Oh, I keep comin' back for more_

Kept on dying.

_She's just the girl I'm lookin' for_

She was the one for him.

_Just the girl I'm lookin' for_

The only one he'd ever wanted.

_Just the girl_

_I'm lookin' for_

_She's just the girl_

_I'm lookin' for_

_Just the girl_

_I'm lookin' for_

And the one girl he could never have.

_Just the girl I'm lookin' for_

* * *

_*_Valkyrie to Skulduggery in _Skulduggery Pleasant_

** Valkyrie to Fletcher in _Dark Days_

***Valkyrie to Caelan in _Death Bringer _

So. Not my best, but decent enough. I love the song, and Fletcher hasn't gotten a Drabble yet, so he got this one. I was trying for something happier, but it isn't.

Darn.

-ravenwings52


	26. Chapter 26

26. Survival

_**survival**_

_noun_

_1. the act or fact of living or continuing longer than another person or thing_

_2. the continuation of life or existence _

* * *

Survival. Continuing to outlive others. Valkyrie was pretty sure that she had the whole concept down by now. After all, that's what she did on a daily basis. Survive. Outlive the enemy. The innocent. And your friends.

The definition of the word was completely accurate, but it wasn't right. Survival was continuously perceived as beating the odds, to go through something potentially fatal and make it out alive._  
_

Valkyrie was tired of that.

They didn't understand; survival was about living. But more often then not, it meant that you weren't dead just yet. It meant that you might not have made it out alive whole. It meant that you might be missing an arm, or your heart, or a piece of your soul. It meant that you might've made it through, but you would still have to go on. And on. And on. Fighting every day to keep going.

She had seen so many things. Amazing things. Horrible things. Often, they were the same. Valkyrie couldn't really tell, anymore. They all blurred together, the fantastic and the cruel. She had lived through many dangers, had been tortured so many times. But she was still standing.

They all thought that that was all that mattered, being able to endure the worst and make it out unscathed. They didn't know that nobody went through anything without changing in the slightest. She didn't let them know. She was broken inside, but she gathered up the pieces and put on a show.

Because that's what survival was. Pretending to live when you were dead.

* * *

I'm not quite sure where that went...

Now. Before I forget: I have observed that there has been 1616 views on In Between, which averages out to about 62 views per chapter. I get 1.5 reviews per chapter. The views and the reviews don't quite add up, people...

Sorry, it's just that lack of inspiration makes for angst and repetitive drabbles. Review and inspire, please!

-ravenwings52


	27. Chapter 27

27. Count on Me (Skulduggery Pleasant Parody)

_Valkyrie:_

Oh uh-huh

If you ever find yourself stuck in another dimension

I'll search the world to find you

_Skulduggery:_

If you ever find yourself fighting your own reflection

I'll be right behind you

_Both:_

Find out what we're made of

When we are called to help our friends in need

_[Chorus:]_

_Both:_

You can count on me like 1, 2, 3

I'll be there

And I know when I need it

I can count on you like 4, 3, 2

You'll be there

'Cause that's what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah

Ooooooh, oooohhh yeah, yeah

_[Verse 2:]_

_Skulduggery_:

If you might be shunted into an alternate reality

I'll sing a song beside you

_Valkyrie:_

And if you ever forget how much you really mean to me

Every day I will remind you

Oooh

_Both:_

Find out what we're made of

When we are called to help our friends in need

_[Chorus:]_

_Both:_

You can count on me like 1, 2, 3

I'll be there

And I know when I need it

I can count on you like 4, 3, 2

You'll be there

'Cause that's what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah

Ooooooh, oooohhh yeah, yeah

You'll always have my shoulder when you cry

I'll never let go, never say goodbye

You know...

_[Chorus:]_

You can count on me like 1, 2, 3

I'll be there

And I know when I need it

I can count on you like 4, 3, 2

You'll be there

'Cause that's what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah

Ooooooh, oooohhh

You can count on me 'cause I can count on you

* * *

I realize that I haven't really changed the song up all that much...

Oh well...

I thought I should stop writing so many drabbles.


	28. Chapter 28

28. Smiles

Skulduggery was worried. Valkyrie hadn't said anything for the last hour since they had gotten into the Bentley. She just sat there, staring out of the window. He would've asked her what was wrong, except it had been too long since he had sealed with things like that. The last time had been with his daughter- no, he wasn't going to think about her. His wife and daughter were a part of his past self, a man that he barely knew anymore.

To his immense relief, Valkyrie turned her head slightly and bit her lip the way she did when she was about to say something important. At least, she thought it was important which meant that he should probably listen. He didn't pay attention a week ago, and she hadn't talked to him for three days.

"Don't you ever get tired of smiling?"

Skulduggery tilted his head in amusement.

"Well, I can't not smile, can I?"

Valkyrie didn't even glare at him. Skulduggery twisted in his seat so he could observe her body language. She seemed tense and melancholy, and looked tired.

She elaborated.

"Don't you ever get tired of lying and pretending that everything's all right day after day after day? And don't tell me that you've never thought about it, because I've seen you. The real you."

Skulduggery faltered, the already prepared words dying on his (facade's) lips.

_What do you mean, pretending? I don't pretend. I'm the great Skulduggery Pleasant, after all._

Yet another prepared lie that was meant to fool the world and himself. But it didn't get past Valkyrie. He smiled wryly inside. He had trained her too well.

Valkyrie went on.

"Don't you ever just want to explode and stop trying to fool yourself that you're fine when you're not? What do you do, Skulduggery? What did you do?"

Skulduggery was silent for a moment. Then he spoke, his voice uncharacteristically rough.

"In the beginning, I hid. I let myself be Lord Vile. I covered up the hurt by hurting others. Afterwards, I let myself slip. Just once. And then I lied, pretending that I was fine when all I could do was feel. I hid myself again, but this time, as a fearless man. A legend. Almost untouchable. And that's how I worked. But it ate at me, and it poisoned me, and it made me the twisted man I am now. Don't do what I did. Remind yourself that you're human."

Valkyrie gave a slightly strangled noise.

"It's all right."

And she cried.

* * *

Don't ask me, because I don't know. It started out all fine and dandy, but then it kinda fermented and became this stew.

-ravenwings52


	29. Chapter 29

Remember Peg from Gold, Babies, and the Brothers Muldoon? Well, she's finally found her true love.

29. Peg

Peg had found him. She had finally found The One. Ever since the skeleton man had left her, she had searched everywhere for the man that she would love as much as Skulduggery. And now, she had found him in the back of an ice cream truck. She smiled, a huge toothy one that showed off her canines.

"S'apegashe!" She cried happily, hugging the jar tightly. Below her, a small man shouted at her, making funny noises. He was saying something about a master...? Maybe that was his name.

"'O 'way, Massher. S'apegasgashe uv 'ee."

Master bug kept on hitting her and screaming. Peg leaned down, and threw him over multiple rooftops. Master bug stopped bothering her.

Peg smiled happily, and brought up the jar near her face. Scapegrace's head's eyes were wide, and he seemed to be shouting for somebody named Thrasher. Peg hummed. Scapegrace definitely loved her back.

"Kiss," she said.

Scapegrace began to scream. Peg felt very pleased. She didn't know that he liked her _that_ much.

Peg brought the jar closer to her slimy lips...

* * *

"Do you think that we ought to save him?"

Skulduggery tilted his head.

"Do you really want to?"

Valkyrie grinned cheekily.

"You never know; you might want to see your ex."

"I thought that we agreed not to talk about this."

Valkyrie just snatched his hat.

* * *

Scapegrace wanted to cry. First he had been turned into a zombie, then he had been stuck with the pathetic, sniveling Thrasher, and now he found himself as the object of some freaky goblin lady's affections! He couldn't see, either, as the spit from Peg's kisses had clouded the glass of his jar. He was sure that this whole situation couldn't get any worse.

Wait. No. He took that back. It could.

Suddenly, his jar shook, and a small clear spot appeared on his jar. The Zombie King found himself staring into the eyes of a very upset Thrasher who was apologizing profusely. And behind him...

"Hullo! I see you've met Peg. Take care of her for Skulduggery, wouldja? They used to date, but Skul's too brain dead to accept it." Valkyrie's bone-chilling smile scared Scapegrace almost as much as Peg did.

Skulduggery appeared in his line of vision.

"Ignore Valkyrie. She was going through oxygen deprivation when we last saw Peg. Anyways, I wish you the best with her. Valkyrie and I won't be able to come to the wedding, though. The world needs saving, you know."

Scapegrace heard Peg's voice again, and another sloppy kiss landed on his jar.

Scapegrace cried.

* * *

Umm...

This is pure nonsense.

-ravenwings52


	30. Chapter 30

30. Easter

_Skulduggery-_

_Can't come to work today. Urgent business to attend to._

_-Valkyrie_

Skulduggery stared at the text he had received. It didn't make sense. It was a Sunday, which meant that she would usually be visiting her family, so she obviously wouldn't be up for fighting bad guys, but why would she call that urgent business? She might be at a family gathering, but then she would tell him. There was only one explanation: she was in trouble. That would also justify the fact that she was texting him at 5:00 AM.

Skulduggery's mind was in overdrive as he drove to Valkyrie's house. What could be so awful that she couldn't just call? The roads were practically empty, but the traffic lights seemed to take forever.

He finally reached her house. He picked the lock on the front door; this wasn't the time to peer around to see of she was home like he normally did. He burst through the front door, then stopped dead.

Valkyrie looked up at him, her arms stained red.

"Skulduggery? What are you doing here?"

Skulduggery choked. Valkyrie was sitting at the kitchen table, dying eggs bright reds and blues. The floor was littered with cracked eggs, and a pot on the stove was boiling over.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

Valkyrie gave him The Look.

"I'm dying eggs. Duh. It's Easter!"

Skulduggery just stared.

Valkyrie rolled her eyes.

"Well, don't just stand there. Now that you're here, you might as well help."

* * *

An hour later, Alice Edgley came tottering down the stairs for an egg hunt. Valkyrie smiled fondly, as she watched her little sister looking under the sofa. Skulduggery peeked out of the closet.

"Damn, how did she know that I put one there?"

Valkyrie just smiled.

"Happy Easter, Skulduggery."

* * *

Happy Easter!

Not one of my finest, but I wanted to do something for the holiday.

-ravenwings52


	31. Chapter 31

31. Bored

"I'm bored," Valkyrie announced dramatically, flopping onto the couch. She watched the dust caught in the light float around, and groaned. How had she been reduced to watching dust?

"Only boring people get bored," was Skulduggery's reply.

It was warm and sunny for the first time in weeks, and they were doing research. Inside. Valkyrie didn't even know why. She had been stuck at Skulduggery's house for the last ten hours, pretending to do research when she had forgotten what she was looking for.

Valkyrie flipped through the file she was holding for the fifth time, not really paying attention to what she was reading.

"What're we researching?"

Skulduggery almost dropped his file.

"You mean... You haven't done anything for the past ten hours except for sit there and complain?"

Valkyrie thought about it.

"Pretty much."

Skulduggery slowly set the folder down onto the table.

"I thought Myosotis Terra gave you that bracelet."

Valkyrie blinked.

"What bracelet?"

Skulduggery sighed, and put his skull in his hands.

"Remember the time that we went to go rescue Myosotis from the Cannibals?"

Valkyrie didn't.

"Never mind."

Skulduggery picked up a large book and began to leaf through it again.

Valkyrie sat down on the couch upside down.

Ten minutes passed.

"I'm hungry," Valkyrie decided.

Skulduggery didn't look up.

"I thought you were bored."

"I'm hungry, too."

"I think that there's some takeout in the fridge."

Valkyrie stared at him, shocked.

"I don't like Chinese food."

Skulduggery finally gave in.

"Fine. Pizza?"

Valkyrie smiled.

Skulduggery ordered her a large combo, then went back to researching. Valkyrie played with some stuffing coming out of the couch, before sporadically getting up. She walked around for a bit, looking for anything that might catch her eye and ease the boredom for a second.

She ended up draping herself on the back of the couch just so, in a position that she knew would annoy Skulduggery as much as possible. She put one of her arms around his neck, and the other on his forearm. She then stuck her face right next to his and began to read over his shoulder.

"Sorcerers... Blah... Fire... Unknown... Yadayadayada."

"Valkyrie, stop," the skeleton said, exasperated.

Valkyrie swung herself over the couch so that she was sitting right next to Skulduggery.

"But I'm bo-o-ored!"

Skulduggery shoved her off with his elbow.

Valkyrie got up again and went to her room.

Ten more minutes passed. Valkyrie spent the time sitting on her bed and throwing crumpled pieces of paper into the trash can. More often than not, the paper ended up on the floor.

Finally, the doorbell rang. Valkyrie leapt up and ran to answer the door. The pizza delivery guy had arrived. And he didn't look bad, either...

Skulduggery appeared from behind her with his facade on and threw a twenty at the boy. He then snatched the pizza and slammed the door in the delivery guy's face. Valkyrie sighed. She should've expected something like that to happen.

Skulduggery handed her the pizza and returned to working. Valkyrie ate her pizza.

Thirty minutes passed.

"Are you done yet?"

"No."

"Are you done now?"

"No."

"Now?"

"You realize that I would be done faster if you helped me, right?"

"Yeah, but that would be boring. Besides, Echo-Gordon can't remember anything about whatever it is you're looking for."

Skulduggery muttered something under his breath about how Myosotis Terra had the most frustrating abilities in the whole wide world.

Valkyrie waited for a bit longer.

"I'm going to go take a nap."

Skulduggery didn't answer.

She went to her room. Valkyrie lay in bed for a bit, staring at the ceiling.

Twenty minutes passed.

Valkyrie couldn't stand it anymore. She went downstairs again.

Skulduggery slammed the book he was holding onto the table, disrupting the papers around it.

"Myosotis Terra has been classified as missing. She was last seen in Paris, so we'll start looking there-"

Skulduggery's phone rang. China was calling.

"Skulduggery? You were looking for Myosotis? Sorry, but I forgot that she was visiting me the last time you called. She was in the other room getting the tea."

Skulduggery collapsed onto the couch, holding the phone in front of him, numbly.

Valkyrie grabbed the phone from him.

"Hey, Valkyrie!" Myosotis said.

Valkyrie grinned.

"Myosotis! Haven't heard from you for a while. By the way, have you seen my bracelet that you gave me? I seem to have lost it..."

* * *

Skulduggery groaned. Valkyrie had been on the phone for exactly two hours, thirty-five minutes, and forty-two seconds. And counting.

He was so bored...

* * *

Heh.

-ravenwings52


End file.
